Safety-guard and tray for children.



L. A. ARMSTEAD.

SAFETY GUARD AND TRAY FOR CHlLDREN.

APPLlCATlON FILED JAN. 13, 1914.

LQQQfiQQ Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

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L. A. ARMSTEAD.

SAFETY GUARD AND TRAY FOR CHILDREN.

APPLICATION FILED !AN.13.1914.

1,204,390. Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

ill %TATE% LUCIUS A. ARMSTEAD,

OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SAFETY-GUARD AND TRAY FOR CHILDREN.

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Application filed. January 13, 1914.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Looms A. Amis'rnan, a itizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Safety-Guards and T rays for Children, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a device most particularly adapted for use as a guard and tray for children, such as the tray part of an ordinary high chair, but which may be quickly and readily fastened in position on any type or kind of chair upon which the child may be seated, and when so fastened, will effectively serve to prevent the child from falling from the chair, as well as afford a tray in front of the child upon which may be placed dishes of food, toys, books and the like.

The more salient objects of my invention are to provide a device of this kind which can be easily collapsed or folded into a compact form; which can be used with practically any style or design of chair, upholstered or otherwise, and fastened in position on the chair so that the tray proper will be held substantially rigid in front of the child; also which may be adjustably fastened on the chair with respect to the distance between the back thereof and the tray, and which is extremely simple of structure and inexpensive of manufacture.

()ther uses and advantages of my invention will become apparent as the nature thereof is better understood from the following description and accompanying drawings in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation showing my device fastened in position on an ordinary chair, only a portion of the chair being shown. Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view thereof showing the legs swung around to their first position in folding, by dotted lines with the straps removed. Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the legs completely folded, and Fig. t is an enlarged detail of one of the hinge members and a portion of the leg looking from the front edge of the device, showing in dotted lines the positions assumed by the leg in the, folding process.

Referring specifically to the drawings and the reference numerals thereon, 1 denotes a tray which is preferably formed of wood and is similar in construction to the tray part of an ordinary high chair for children,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 1%, 1916.

Serial No. 811,918.

having its edges provided with the usual raised edge or ridge and its rear edge curved inwardly as at 3.

hastened to the under side of the tray 1 near its front edge are brackets or bearings -.t and 5 into each of which is rotatably mounted hinge members 6. Each of these hinge members (3 consist of a rod having one end curled as at 7 to form an eye 8 and its other end slightly upset as at 9 to prevent longitudinal movement in the brackets st and 5. It will be noted in Figs. 2 and 3 that the eye 8 is so formed that one side of the hinge member is unobstructed by .the curl 7, whereby the same may be given a quarter or half turn in its bracket, as will be hereinafter referred to, without the curl 7 interfering with the surface of the tray 1.

The legs 10 of my device are carried by the hinge members 6 and each preferably comprises a single piece of round iron or steel bent as indicated in Fig. 1 to form two longitudinally parallel portions 11, spaced a suitable distance apart by the vertical portions 12.

When the device is in use the legs 10 stand in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 2 so that the upper portion 11 for the greater portion of its length will lie in contact with the under side of the tray 1. and serve to hold the same horizontal and rigid while the lower of the portions 11 rest upon the chair seat A or the like. As shown most clearly in Fig. st, the upper portions 11 of the legs are extended beyond where the front vertical portion 12 is connected thereto, which may be done by means of the loop 1 or in any other desired manner, and are bent downwardly away from the surface of the tray 1 as at 15. The ends of the portions 15 are then bent u )wardly as at 16 and passed through the eyes 8 of the hinge members 6, the end 16 serving as a pivot upon which the legs 10 may be swung from the position they occupy when in use, to that shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, which is the first step in folding the legs, as will be hereinafter described. To securely hold the pivots 16 in the eyes'8, a washer 17 is placed against the side of the curl 7 and the end of the pivot upset as at 18. The washers will also afford a better bearing for the pivots than just the eyes 8 and prevent lateral movement of the legs when the tray is in use. It will also be noticed in Fig. 2 that the hinge members 6 are slightly out of alinement so that when the legs 10 are swung around to the position shown in dotted lines, they will rest in parallel relation and when completel folded, as shown in Fig. 8, will. lie flat one upon. the other.

By means of the double pivotal connections, between the legs 10 and tray 1, as formed by the hinge members 6 and bearings l and 5, said legs can be made greater in length than the distance between their pivots and the rear edge of the tray, whereby, when the same are opened for use, they will project beyond the rear edge of the tray to serve as side uards or arm rests. Also, by forming the legs slightly less in height than the distance between their point of connection to the tray and its rear edge, said legs, when folded, will not extend beyond the edges of the tray. To limit the outward movement of the legs 10 I provide spring clips or stops 19 secured to the tray 1 and against which the upper portions 11 of the legs will impinge when the same are swung out into position for use.

The means preferably employed for holding the device in position on the chair consist of straps formed of leather, cloth or any other suitable material, inasmuch as by simply lengthening or shortening the same, the position of the device on the chair or the like may be readily varied to suit conditions. A. strap as at 20 is connected to rear portions 12 of one of the legs and is adapted to be passed around the back of the chair and fastened to a buckle 21 carried by the other leg 10. If desired, a separate strap and buckle may be carried by each of the legs 10 and in this way may be fastened individually to any convenient part of the chair. Also, in order to prevent the child from tilting the tray, a strap and buckle 22 and 23 respectively may be connected to the front portions 12 of one of the legs 10 and fastened around one of the chair legs as indicated in Fig. 1.

Briefly stated, the operation of my device is as follows: When it is desired to use the same, the legs 10 are raised to the position shown in Fig. 2, this being permitted by the hinge members 6 turning in the bearings 4 and 5. The legs 10 are then swung outwardly on their pivots 16 until their upper portions 11 come in contact with the stops 19, the bent portion 15 passing over the bearings and hinge members 6. The device is then placed upon the chair in front of the child and fastened in position by means of the straps, as above described, and when not in use may be readily detached from the chair and the legs 10 again folded against the bottom of the tray.

From the above it will be seen that my device can be easily fastened in position on any chair, or in fact on almost any article of furniture upon which a child may be seated, and owing to the flexible straps, can be held at any desired point thereon and without danger of marring the finish of the article in connection with which it is used, also that when in use it will effectively serve the purposes for which it is intended, and when not in use, can be readily folded for convenience in carrying from place to place.

lVhile I am aware that various changes may be made in the structure of the legs and hinge members as well as in the method of folding the legs, these I believe could be made without departing from the spirit of I my invention and I do not wish to be limited to the precise structure shown and described.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a device of the kind described, a tray, legs of angular formation, double pivotal connections between said legs and the tray, said double pivotal connections permitting the legs to be swung to stand vertically beneath the tray, in transverse relation thereto, to support the same when in use, and when not in use, to be swung together into longitudinal alinement with respect to said tray and then folded over to lie flat against the same, said legs being formed greater in length but slightly less in height than the distance between said double pivotal connections and the rear edge of the tray, whereby, when the same are in position for use they will project beyond the rear edge of the tray, but when folded, will lie within its borders.

2. In a device of the kind described, a tray bearings secured to the under side thereof, hinge members having eyes formed in their ends and rotatably mounted in said bearings, legs pivotally connected to said hinge members through their eyes, whereby said legs can be swung to stand vertically beneath the tray, in transverse relation thereto, to support the same when in use, and when not in use, to be swung together into longitudinal alinement with respect to said tray and then foldedover to lie fiat against the same, said legs being formed greater in length but slightly less in height than the distance between said hinge members and the rear edge of the tray, whereby, when the same are in position for'use they will project beyond the rear edge of the tray, but when folded, will lie within its borders, and spring clips secured to said tray to engage and hold the legs in open position.

LUOIUS A. ARMSTEAD. Witnesses:

GEO. E. TAYLOR, MANLEY B. HAYWOOD.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. 0. 

